by Ayse Hafiza
“I would feel so much happier if you had the baby on the mainland,” said Frank, trying to keep the panic out of his voice and make sure that he sounded reasonable. “I think it would be sensible to have the baby in a city. . .you know where there is better help.”
“You mean. . .leave Eigg?” asked Nevaeh.
“Temporarily,” he lied.
Once he got them away, he was never going to let them come back. He kept eye contact with her. He saw her eyes narrow as if she no longer trusted him. As if his deception was paper thin.
“I think it’s a good idea to be on the mainland and near good hospitals,” said Frank. “You know just in case there are any complications.”
The little girl's eyes narrowed thinner.
“Oh, Frank don’t be such as worry wart. This will be my third child, I know what I’m doing. Besides, women have had babies with midwives for centuries,” Sophie attempted to reassure him.
He didn’t care about being near a hospital he just wanted them off the island and away from the house.
“I’ve decided that is what we are going to do. We should prepare to leave tomorrow,” said Frank.
Nevaeh gave him a death stare, and he braced himself.
“I won’t go,” she announced.
“Where will you stay if we go?” Sophie asked her daughter. “Mrs. Boswell's house, or any of the other villagers?”
“I won’t leave this house, I’m telling you now,” said Nevaeh defiant.
It was the last thing that he wanted, he didn’t want a confrontation with the little girl.
“Why not, there’s nothing here for us just this house,” said Sophie.
“Heaven is here,” said Nevaeh, as she stomped out of the kitchen.
Sophie looked winded as she sat in the seat Nevaeh had been in, she glanced at Frank. Her face was pale as she searched his eyes.
“Is it true Frank?” she whispered.
He could see Heaven from over Sophie's shoulder, she had a smile on her face. He knew she was giving him permission to confirm her presence in the house. The conversation hadn’t gone the way he planned. He was getting tired of these little girls. It was times like this that he wished Nevaeh had fallen off the cliff face and not Heaven.
15
Friends
If Nevaeh hadn’t been there, Frank would have been able to convince Sophie to leave. Instead by telling her that the ghost of Heaven was in the house, Sophie definitely didn’t want to go. How could she? Frank had been looking for Heaven, but he hadn’t been given permission to tell Sophie until that moment as if she was the key that would keep her Mom in place.
He contemplated telling Sophie about his dream, and the impending danger. But that would have asked too much of her, she was a heavily pregnant woman and he knew she prized feeling safe above everything else, she needed to be sheltered.
Frank was starting to feel the walls of the house closing in on him. He wanted to leave, and if the girl and her Mom didn’t want to he couldn’t because she was having his child, and because of his promise. The promise was the problem. He needed to distract himself from the conversation of that morning, so he decided to take a walk into the village.
The word village was an over exaggeration. There was a community of seven shops, in which the locals donated anything extra that they had, such as butter, honey, and milk. Once a week there were newspapers which were always out of date, they were sent to the island but cut and used for the latrines. A post office with a very bored Mr. Creedy, who was basically the village gossip, and a few other shops. Frank decided to distract himself by seeing if Mr. Creedy or any of the other villagers had any progress to report. The image of the ghostly maid wet nursing his child was seared into his brain, he needed to know that progress was being made to be able to deflect the curse back onto the Oban clan.
Frank was no professional sleuth, but he had found out about the house on the island. He had some level of detection skills which he applied to his own ancestry and that found him back in Eigg. Someone somewhere must know what happened to the Oban clan.
He walked at a brisk pace along the winding roads where stone walls sectioned the fields. The rain clouds threatened, but he had learned not to pay attention to them, they could move again minutes later. He stepped into the small square that was the heart of the village.
In the musty post office Frank walked straight up to the counter, of course Mr. Creedy wasn’t inside. He knew exactly when his customers would walk into his shop, so he didn’t need to be there all the time.
“Ahem,” Frank said loudly clearing his throat.
“Frank?” Mr. Creedy called from the back room. He was sure the old man was having a nap.
“Sorry to bother you, Mr. Creedy.”
“It’s no bother my laddie. How are you?”
“Fine, thanks for asking.”
“And the Mrs.?”
“Fine thanks,” said Frank, knowing that Mr. Creedy was referencing Sophie.
“How is she coming along?”
“Just fine, I’m told everything is as should be,” he said.
They were men, what did they know about childbirth.
“Good. . .good, so what brings you here? Have you got something to post?”
“No nothing like that. I was wondering if our scouts had any leads on the Oban clan.”
Mr. Creedy leaned into Frank’s personal space, he hoped his gestures meant that it was going to be good news.
“Not a bean, I’m afraid,” said the older man.
Frank nodded his head.
“I’m sorry.”
He took a deep breath, it didn’t matter how sorry the postmaster was because the Master of the Coven had made a grave error when he promised the Priestess of the Oban coven his child. How could he ever tell Sophie about that? It was a betrayal and one that he needed to find a solution too.
“I need answers as soon as possible,” Frank said businesslike.
“I’ll make some phone calls see what they know, and if there is something that I need to speak to you about I will call on you.”
“We can’t speak in the house,” Frank said to Mr. Creedy.
The older man nodded, Frank didn’t want any of the extra entities that belonged to the house listening in and reporting back what he was up to. He would lose the element of surprise.
“We are with you, Frank. The entire village knows that you must have made a huge sacrifice for our health. We support you,” said Mr. Creedy.
It made Frank’s heart melt slightly to hear his Coven were supporting him. But their support meant very little if the curse could not be ended before his child was born, and realistically that was a centuries-old curse in the space of a couple of months at best. Frank wasn’t a father yet, but he was determined to be one, even if that meant breaking his promise to the village and the coven.
Mr. Creedy turned around and held a small envelope in his hands.
“I have a letter for Audrey, it’s come from Germany. I know you aren’t the postman, but she lives near you. Would you mind handing it across?” asked Mr. Creedy.
Frank nodded, he knew all the villagers had been speculating about them, but after they noticed Sophie was pregnant, speculation about Audrey had dropped off.
Frank took the envelope and walked back in the direction of Mrs. Boswell’s house.
When the door opened, he was met by Audrey’s tummy. He was surprised because the shape of it differed from Sophie’s. He wanted to reach out, touch her, he wanted to feel the baby kick.
“Come on in,” she said, walking back into the hallway. Before she just used to turn her back to the wall, now she had to back up.
Frank left the letter on the coffee table. He was curious, but he didn’t want to pry. Audrey had what she wanted from him, and now she was behaving normally. Away dropped the passionate woman who wanted illicit kisses, and other things. Frank felt a little used, but he wasn’t sure that he had the right to that emotion.
“Mr. Creed
y said a letter came for you,” said Frank, seeing if that would be enough to open a conversation.
“Ah, where from?”
“Germany,” he replied. He tried to hide the question in his voice, but it hung. Would she take the bait? He didn’t know.
“I was expecting that,” she said. “Thanks for bringing it.”
“That’s okay. How are you feeling?” he asked. He was wondering if he would ever get the chance to play the dad with their child. Her tone had changed with him drastically, and she avoided him. He knew it would have been selfish to pursue her, especially when he had nothing to offer.
“Yes, I’m okay most of the time, but I do get sudden urges to vomit and strange food cravings.”
He wanted to say, just like Sophie, but Frank knew the comparison would have been cruel. It was clear that he made his choice and it wasn’t Audrey.
She walked in with a tray of tea cups, Frank jumped to his feet, taking the tray from her and placed it on the table. She looked at the letter, opened it and read quickly. Frank looked at the television pretending not to notice. She stood up and went to the kitchen, after a long while she walked back in with the sugar bowl. Neither of them took sugar in their tea, so he knew she wanted to have a moment alone with the letter. It meant something to her, and he couldn’t understand what.
She sat back down and poured the tea. Audrey definitely had something on her mind, and he knew if he was patient that she would come out with it.
“Frank outside of the villagers’ investigations I’ve been told one of the Oban clan lived near the Black Forest in Germany.”
Frank’s eyes lit up, he didn’t realize her letter had something to do with the search for an Oban ancestor.
“Okay,” he said urging her to continue.
“I’ve been given an invitation to go there for research purposes. But you must understand that if I do, I will likely stay for a very long time. Because of junior and all, it’s not easy to travel.” She pointed to her belly.
“Can you travel in your condition?” asked Frank.
“Yes, I believe it’s safe.”
“When do you think you can go?”
“This week,” she said startled. “So, can I go?”
“Audrey you can do whatever you want but liaise with Mr. Creedy if you find anything out. I need to know as a soon as possible.”
“Of course, I will and thank you for the permission.”
They drunk the tea in silence. Frank wanted to lean forward as he was leaving and kiss her swollen tummy, but he felt unconnected with her pregnancy because of the change in her behavior toward him. Instead, he turned away and walked home. He felt sad, she would be off in Germany having his child without him. He hoped that he would be able to meet the baby one day, then he told himself that he was being foolish, Frank Blades was the leader of the Hamilton Coven, if he commanded it Audrey would be bareback on his bed.
He walked back inside his farmhouse, with Nevaeh running and ghostly Heaven chasing her. It was just like they had never been apart. Maybe he could take solace from that. Some hearts were able to connect and would never be separated.
Upstairs in his room, among the books and his notes, he thought about how Jane had looked demonic to him, and how she had held him in place. He knew it was the Oban witch, trying to show him that she had somehow changed Jane. That she was no longer the woman he remembered. He wouldn’t let the witch dictate his feelings. Frank had been the reason Jane was captured, he was still studying and trying to figure out how she could be released. He wanted her free, he wanted the Hamiltons own pledge in the curse revoked and he wanted the mirror to go haunt the Oban clan. If he could find a resolution to those things, he would be winning. He needed it all done before his child was born. Picking up his notebook he looked again at his own research, and as if reading it for the first time, he put two sentences together, they belonged on different pages, but he knew the spell book wasn’t a reference book to be read in sequential order.
Represent the elements to call forth any being.
In his mind's eye, he had an image of the mirror on a table and around him. Three women calling into the mirror. He knew then it was possible to get her out. He wanted to get Jane out so that he could get her out of the way. Frank wasn’t sure how he felt about her now that another woman was having his child but that didn’t mean he was going to leave her to the mercy of a crazy witch.
Finally, when it came to Jane, he was starting to have a breakthrough. He needed the same kind of luck where his unborn child was concerned.
He would wait until Mrs. Boswell popped in to see them in the morning for Nevaeh’s lessons. She was always willing to help. Then Frank realized that if he was able to release Jane maybe she would be able to share some intelligence on the witch. He needed allies and past prisoners were perfect allies. He was so excited he could barely sleep all night.
16
The Connection
At the breakfast table the next day he hardly said a word, Frank’s mind was on other things. How was he going to bring his plans up? He wasn’t sure. If mother and daughter weren’t willing to leave, then surely they would be open to negotiating with him? Frank was determined that he needed to have something his way. So, he set about his day sulking, hoping that his mood would be bad enough to warrant a conversation that would lead to him getting what he wanted.
He had such little experience where girlfriends were concerned, but he was pretty sure that asking her to hold a seance over a magical mirror would have been an odd request. He set about the house collecting elements, in a tin he collected mud from the garden. In a glass he had water, for the fire he had a candle housed in a tin. For air he had a fan. He had everything apart from the women’s consent.
Mrs. Boswell came, and after Nevaeh’s lesson Frank pulled her aside.
“I think I know how to get Jane out of the mirror,” he whispered. He didn’t want to say anything to Sophie.
“Oh?”
“Yes, I finally found a spell that I can use in the book.”
“Really? I didn’t think the book gave advice where the mirror was concerned.”
“Yes, well actually it didn’t, I made the spell up using two different spell combinations.”
“Oh, Frank you really are talented the true master.”
He smiled, the title was growing on him.
“The only thing is I need help.”
“Well, what do you need?”
“I need you, Sophie and Nevaeh to help me call her.”
“Why us?”
“Well if Sophie is involved with calling her, it will show her that there would be no malice even though my life has moved on.”
“Ah...I see,” although the older woman still looked confused.
“And why involve the child?”
“Because she can see things too.”
“I thought so,” said Mrs. Boswell. “She isn’t as simple as she makes out.”
Frank looked at the older woman, surprised the little girl hadn’t managed to fool the older woman. He had always preferred Heaven out of the two children, but since Nevaeh was alone now, he was starting to distrust her. He didn’t know why the willful child was trying to keep them in the house, but he didn’t like it one bit. And she had been able to manipulate her Mom in seconds. Frank wasn’t wholly convinced that little Nevaeh was as innocent as she pretended. When he was a child he was seen and not heard, that was how he had been raised. Before it had been nice to hear the girls play together, but now there was just one she was proving troublesome.
“And you Mrs. Boswell?”
“What about me?”
“Will you join in my. . .seance?” he wasn’t sure how else he could describe the ritual.
“In what capacity?”
“As my follower I suppose,” Frank hadn’t thought about it. She wasn’t really his friend; the older woman had proved that she could be far more than that. He recognized that familiar look, the one he knew all too well which told
him she was his co-conspirator.
“Aye love, I’ll come to your house again tonight.”
That was one woman he needed to back him. He could hear Nevaeh playing in the garden, running around with Heaven he guessed. Walking to the kitchen, he took a drink of water standing by the kitchen counter. He wondered about Nevaeh after his conversation with Mrs. Boswell. Did the little girl have a secret? Unsure he watched her, knowing that he would need to be more careful where she was concerned.
When Sophie opened the door to Mrs. Boswell later that evening, the puzzled look on her face told the older lady all she needed to know. Frank so far as yet, had said nothing to the pregnant woman about his plans. All he had achieved was to show them he was in a bad mood. Mrs. Boswell led Sophie into the kitchen. He crept downstairs with the mirror in his hands. Outside the kitchen door Frank could hear them speaking.
“Did Frank ask you to pop by? Or had you forgotten something?” Sophie asked.
“He asked me to pop by love. How have you been?”
“He’s been in a horrible mood today.”
“Oh?” said Mrs. Boswell. “Tell me about it. . .”
“He wanted us to leave the island, you know for the birth of the baby. He thinks that if we’re on the mainland, there might be more doctors or hospitals nearby.”
“And how do you feel?”
“I want to stay here, I need to stay here.”
“And you’re quite right because we’ve got the best midwife here. You don’t need a hospital it’s where sick people go, you’ll end up getting sick too if you leave.”
Frank could feel his throat dry. Was Mrs. Boswell lying to him and telling him what he wanted to hear, and then telling Sophie what she wanted to hear? No, he didn’t believe that. He knew that if they left the entire island would get sick. He knew the power that the Oban witch held.
“Well Nevaeh put her foot down when he suggested it, she says that. . .” Sophie stopped herself unsure exactly how far she could go, what she could say. “Heaven is still here with us in the house,” Sophie finally whispered.